Today was my first mileage increase to start my pre training for my training for my full marathon next November. First marathon ever! I've done four halves. Any and all advice welcome and appreciated. It's an easy course, relatively flat with a semi long hill about four miles before the end. It's definitely in part of the town that I am VERY familiar and comfortable running. I figure it is about the easiest marathon I could do for my first. Plus, it's cheap at only $70. Wish me luck!!
Damn an actually running thread. Best of luck. Run lots of miles. Some easy and some hard. .
I've heard that it is best to use like 17 gus during your race. That is what Lance Armstrong did. Of couse he was taking Steriods at the time. I still think he is being framed. Dude rocks. Make sure you train with the exact gu you are going to use and how you will carry it.
Also be prepared for any weather type. Anyone have good hints for running in the rain or the snow? I've heard gallon baggies on your feet can help keep your feet dry.
I'm sure you'tll get better advice soon. The good news is as long as you finish it will be a PR.
2014 Goals: (Yeah I suck)
We live in the desert so I'll be doing most of my training during the summer months (we have nine months of summer!) I figure I'd run early in the morning or late at night (sometimes even then it's 90+ degrees.) That's going to be my biggest downfall is the heat. I've never had gu or any other energy type stuff, so that is something I want to start working with. Ran today in the rain and wore a hat to keep the water off my face, other than that, I was in my typical running gear. We don't get a ton of rain, but it might happen. We will never get snow. I also tend to dehydrate and end up with migraines after my halfs. I usually just drink at the water stations. Should I carry my own water for the full?
Not a dude
Good luck!!!!!
Damn you made me get all serious and shit! Okay check to see how many water stations you have. If you have one every mile you should be ok. Now if it is a really crowded race then you may want to carry a plastic water bottle for the first few miles until things spread out. Some races it is hard to get to the first few stops because of the mass of people. However, practice drinking out of the exact type of water bottle you will be using. They have ones with a sport top.as though are the best.
I like to take a sip at every water station but I also don't drink 30 min before the start of the race. I detest bathroom breaks. If you have anymore questions ask away.
In a full marathon, you probably will want to go with sports drink versus just drinking plain water. Try to find out what they are serving on the course and get used to drinking that if you can.
(Don't take sports drink at the same time you take a gel - drink water when you take gels. Otherwise, it is too much carbs too fast for most people. I do not use gels and just rely on sports drink myself for carbs.)
If you can't get used to whatever they are serving, then consider carrying your own. The main advantage to carrying your own stuff is you avoid a lot of the congestion and danger at water stops - depending on how big a race you're running, water stops can turn into that area of the freeway where everyone is trying to merge together. The major disadvantage is obviously weight and needing to carry something. Ultimately you have to decide whether it is worth it or not.
There is no secret and no shortcut. Miles, miles and more miles. The more the better. People get hung up on GU this or fueling that and lose focus on what really counts. Miles. Like Jen, I just use what they have on course. I have run two marathons and managed a 19 second negative split in the first and an 80 second positive split in the second. Those are fairly good results and neither of them had a damn thing to do with "fueling" strategy and everything to do with putting in the miles.
Short term goal: 17:59 5K
Mid term goal: 2:54:59 marathon
Long term goal: To say I've been a runner half my life. (I started running at age 45).
Many, many people do this but I have to ask why take this chance. I've heard countless stories of people taking gatorade on the course that was not mixed right and it messed up their race. Sounds like your going to train 10 months for this race do you really want to chance someone messing up the gatorade? If you practice with water and gu you eliminate this as a potential problem. I've never taken gatorade unless someone hands me the wrong thing.
I will stress that everyone is an experiment of one. So you have to find out what works for you and makes the most sense for you to try. My suggestion is start off with GU and Water on your long training runs. If GU is messing you up real bad try running just on a sports drink (yes the one they will be having on the course would be the way to go here). You can try chompers. Personally I take wintergreen lifesavers with me and throw one of those in my mouth between GU's. It helps ME settle down my stomach from the GU's I take. FWIW - I really only take 3 or 4 GU's a race. The 17 was just an inside RA joke. Sorry about that.
Miles are important but so is fueling! Everyone is different but there are certain things that are consistent across the board for getting ready for a marathon. Fueling is very important and you have to work up to the miles. You need to do both.
I understand your point, BCR, and do not necessarily disagree with you. I can't do GU - I've tried many times to get my stomach adjusted to it (or sports beans, or chomps ... I've pretty much tried everything). I have pretty severe acid reflux which is probably my underlying problem. The inability to get my stomach to play nicely with most stuff is why I usually stick to the HM and below since those are distances you can run without needing to worry much about fueling. Fueling is one of the big differences between the HM and full marathon.
Otherwise, Misty, I agree with LTH & BCR on running lots of miles. Build up in a sensible way and try to run as many miles as you can without getting hurt or sick. Even if you're not planning to "race" (i.e. "red-line") the marathon and are planning to just do it for the experience. Some people use "But I am not going to race it, I just want to complete it" as justification for doing the minimum. Problem with that is 26.2 miles is a long way to run, even if you're NOT trying to run it as fast as you can. The more miles you get under your belt, the more likely you will have a good experience.
Build up in a sensible way and try to run as many miles as you can without getting hurt or sick.
This is important. A lot of people use the 10% rule which is to not increase your next weeks mileague by more than 10%. So if this week you ran 20 miles next week you could run 22. Also a lot of people will do two up weeks with a down week. Like something like this. :
20 miles, 22 miles, 24 miles, 20 Miles, 26 miles, 28 Miles, 31 miles, 26 miles.
Also your long run is not supposed to be more than half your training. So if you run 20 miles this week your long run should not be more than 10 miles. I have a feeling you know some of this but just in case you do not.
These are all awesome tips!! Thank you very much! I'm sure that I will be asking many more questions as time goes on!
Do some cross training. Work your core, and legs. Hips tend to get weak so strengthen them. Weak quads can contribute to knee pains. You don't have to go all out, just be well rounded and consistent.
Vary your runs. Avoid doing two hard runs back to back. For example, do a tempo one day, and easy run the next, etc...